Kia Ora is a uniquely crafted organic Kiwi brand, developed as part of the Paperboard Packaging Alliance: Student Design Challenge. This collaborative project brought together a team of designers and packaging science students from the Rochester Institute of Technology, including myself, Lexie Mancuso (Graphic Designer), Jackie Drozd (Graphic Designer), Elisa Renerts (Industrial Designer), Lia Grammer, and Kailey Gayton (Packaging Science Students).
We aimed to create an environmentally friendly, visually appealing, and functional packaging solution that reflected the product's natural and organic essence. The design process involved extensive research into sustainable materials, innovative packaging techniques, and the cultural significance of the Kiwi fruit in New Zealand.
Plastic is the primary packaging material for Kiwis, and big brands like Zespri and Mighties favor it. Kia Ora is crafted entirely from paperboard, making it fully recyclable. Kiwis usually come in sets of six, so our packaging is designed as a durable, stackable hexagon that holds six kiwis.